Insurance '4 times more expensive with travel agents'

Travel agents charge up to four times more for travel insurance policies that provide the same cover as small insurance brands, according to one comparison site.

Research for moneysupermarket.com revealed that lesser known insurance companies charge significantly less than both travel agents and the big, well known brands.

In one case study, the website found that a 30-year-old couple taking a single trip to Florida would pay £28.50 with Flexicover Direct or 133 per cent more with Tesco, who would charge £66.49. The same couple would pay £114, four times as much, for cover arranged through travel agent Thomas Cook.

However, despite charging more for cover, the website claimed that the smaller insurers provided similar levels of cover as their more expensive counterparts.

"Little known travel insurers provide good levels of cover at a lower cost compared with the big brands. It’s encouraging for travellers to know there are low cost options on the market providing high levels of cover for their needs," said Richard Mason, director of insurance at moneysupermarket.com.

Travel agents, like Thomas Cook, have been told that their sales of travel insurance will be regulated by the Financial Services Authority.

Experts had claimed that travel agents were mis-selling travel insurance when they bundled it with travel arrangements.